Here are some tricks to overcome excessive treating, courtesy of Pirate’s Booty guilt-free snacks and THE NIBBLE:

• Set up rules. Explain beforehand that Halloween is for fun, costumes and treats—but not to over-indulge on candy, which should be enjoyed in moderation. If you haven’t already done so, this is the time to explain healthy food vs. less-healthy food. Your guidance now will set kids up for a lifetime of wise food choices.
• Fill ‘em up. Feed kids a full, nutritious meal before they head out to trick-or-treat. That way they’ll be less likely to devour a lot of candy before they return home.
• Trade agreement. Offer kids a cash honorarium or a coveted toy for giving up the candy. Explain the options before trick-or-treating begins.

Coppery plastic mini yo-yos are as low as
$1.99/dozen at OrientalTrading.com, which has many inexpensive Halloween toys.

• Treat others. Let kids pick out the 10 pieces of candy they want most. Call it “10 Days Of Halloween” and let them have one treat a day. Donate the rest of the sweets to a local food bank. Bring the kids with you to the food bank and teach a valuable lesson in the joy of sharing with the needy.
• Cavity cutback. Some dentists participate in the Candy Buy-Back program the day after Halloween. Kids receive a monetary reward, while the candy gets shipped to U.S. military forces abroad. If your dentist doesn’t participate, give him or her this URL so you’ll have a program next Halloween: HalloweenCandyBuyBack.com.
• Divide and conquer. When the candy arrives back at home, allow them to pick two pieces. Then, put it away and enable them to pick one piece a day, for dessert after dinner.
• Don’t be an enabler. Distribute non-sugared treats such healthy popcorn or whole-grain pretzels. Find single-serve bags at club stores. Or, look at inexpensive toys like plastic or gummy spiders and worms.